Stamp applying mechanism



May 31, 1966 D. A. MARSHALL 3,253,974

STAMP APPLYING MECHANISM Filed April 15, 196s 2 sheets-sheet 11 'Iy/n;hi H1115 1mm". |II um; l Il I l 11514 1 I I r "1111. '4 *1* es H Il. y'i I "f null-l; 77

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ATTORNEY May 31, 1966 D. A. MARSHALL STAMP APPLYING MECHANISM 2Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed April l5, 1963 INVENTOR. DEAN A. MARSHALL BY M@ l.muni so mmmnhse A TTORNE Y United States Patent() 3,253,974 STAMPAPPLYING MECHANISM Dean A. Marshall, 13389 23rd Place, Golden, Colo.Filed Apr. 15, 1963, Ser. No. 273,021 3 Claims. (Cl. 156-531) Thisinvention relates to apparatus for automatically applying a stamp from astamp roll to a piece of material; more particularly, the inventionrelates to a stamp applying mechanism in which plunger action serves tofeed stamps through the apparatus.

A major disadvantage of prior automatic stamp applying mechanisms istheir complexity. A further disadvantage of prior art devices is thefact that the severing mechanism for separating a single stamp from astamp roll was not reliable and often did not provide for dependableseparation along the perforation of the stamp roll. Also, mechanisms inprior art devices for properly aligning the stamp roll in the feedermechanism and for properly orienting the stamp at the end of the rollfor correct placement on the envelope were extremely complicated andexpensive.

Accordingly, it is an object of this invention to provide a highlysimplified mechanism for the automatic application of a stamp from astamp roll to an envelope. It is another object of this invention toprovide stamp severing mechanism in a stamp applying apparatus whichisentirely reliable for cleanly separating a stamp at a perforated area inthe stamp roll. It is still another object of this invention to providemechanism in a stamp applying apparatus for Iaccurate lateral alignmentof the stamp roll inthe feeding mechanism and for providing simplifiedsupport mechanism for properly orienting the stamp to be applied to theenvelope.

The invention is best described with reference to the accompanyingdrawings in which like parts are represented by like numerals and inwhich,

FIG. 1 is a top plan view of the stamp applying apparatus of theinvention;

FIG. 2 is a side view of the apparatus of the invention;

FIG. 3 is a partial sectional View of the feeding and stamping mechanismof the apparatus of the invention;

FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken on the line 4 4 of FIG. 3 looking inthe direction of the arrows;

FIG. 5 is a sectional view taken on the line 5 5 of FIG. 3 looking inthe direction of the arrows;

FIG. 6 is a sectional View taken on the line 6 6 of FIG. 2;

FIG. 7 is a sectional view taken on the line 7 7 of FIG. 6 looking inthe direction of the arrows;

FIG. 8 is a sectional view taken on line 8 8 of FIG. 5 looking in thedirection of the arrows; and

FIG. 9 is a sectional view taken on the line 9 9 of FIG. 4.

Referring to FIG. l, there is shown a base 10 provided with an uprightback plate 12 upon which the elements of the stamp applying mechanismare supported.

A reservoir 14 for containing moistening liuid is supported on backplate 12 by means of support peg 16. A spindle 18 for supporting a rollof stamps is supported on the back plate 12 by means of screw 20 orother suitable means. Located between the reservoir 14 and the spindle18 is a stamping mechanism represented generally at 22 and a supportmechanism represented generally at 24.

Reference is now made to the other gures of the drawings, andparticularly FIGURES 2 and 3, for a more detailed description of thestructure and operation of the stamp applying mechanism of theinvention.

Referring to FIGS. 2 and 3, the mechanism for moistening an envelope 28(represented by dotted lines) is provided by fibrous pad 30 mounted inthe reservoir which Patented May 3l, 1966 is contacted as an envelope isforced to the right immediately beneath it (FIG. 2) to allow moisture towet the envelope in the area which receives the stamp. Other suitablemeans for moistening an envelope in the proper place may, of course, beused.

A plunger 32 is housed in plunger housing 33 which is supported byscrews or otherwise on the back plate 12. This housing as best seen inFIG. 3 is provided with an internal neck 34 to support the plunger inlan upright position and through which it slides. The plunger housing 33is provided with an elongated side 36 adjacent the reservoir. It will benoted that in FIG. 2 the position of the plunger and the elements whichit carries, along with the envelope and a stamp in position forapplication thereon, are all shown in dotted lines. The positioninglever arm 88 to be described below is also shown in dotted lines in itsalternate position in this iigure. The plunger 32 is spring biased intoupward position by spring 38 biased between the underside of knob 40 andthe top of the housing 33.

Mounted inside the housing and conforming with the internal dimensionsthereof is a stamping block 42 which is attached to the end of theplunger at 44 by mating screw threads or otherwise.v The stamping block42 is provided with a guard plate 46 which limits the upper movement ofthe plunger and, accordingly, the stamping block 42. Two legs 41 on thefront of the stamping block 42 provide for a space between its bottomand the base 10 when it is seated. Constructed integrally with thestamping block 42 or with the guard plate 46 is a row ofthree-dimensional teeth 48 for a purpose to be described later. Forapplying pressure to a stamp to tear it from a roll of stamps and toseal it to the envelope through action of the plunger, a pressure pad50,-preferably of fibrous material, is pivotally attached to the bottomof stamping block 42. The pressure pad 50 is mounted on a backing plate52, preferably of thin metal, which is pivotally attached to the bottomof stamping block 42 by means of a pin 54 extending through the stampingblock to which it is attached by a swivel connection (not shownspecifically) of any suitable means. The elongated side 36 serves as aguide for plunger 32 and stamping block 42 as the plunger is moved backand forth. e

A stationary jaw 56 is secured to base 10 by means of screw 58 or othersuitable means. Constructed integrally with the stationary jaw is astationary row of teeth 60 arranged in line vertically with teeth 48 tomesh with them. A slot 61 is provided in teeth 60 for a purpose whichwill be explained later. These teeth are also of three-dimensionalconstruction for a reason which will be explained later. It will be seenthat the teeth 48 in conjunction with stamping block 42 with which theymove form a movable jaw which -cooperates with stationary jaW` 56 tomesh the two rows of teeth together when the plunger is moved to itsdownward position as shown in dotted lines in FIG. 2.

The three-dimensional taper or bevel of the teeth comprising the tworows of teeth 48 and 60 is shown in-FIGS. 4 and 6. This is a highlyimportant feature of the device in that it permits meshing of the teethin two planes to sever a stamp along perforations of the roll eventhough the two rows of teeth may be slightly out of alignment. It isthis lfeature which insures the severing of a stamp each time theplunger is mo-ved to the closed position.

The support or rfeed mechanism, :represented generally at 24, forsupporting a row of stamps 62 in position so that top row of teeth 48will be aligned with a transverse row of perforations of the stamp roll,will now tbe described in detail. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, a baseplate 64 is mounted by means of flange 66 to Iba'ck plate 112 in securefashion Kby screws or otherwise. As sho-wn in FIG.

7, a top view of the base plate, this plate is provided with two pairsof opposed slots 68 for a purpose to be described later. A row of dotsor marks 70 is provided for alignment purposes as will be describedhereinafter. The dots are spaced apart a distance equal to the distancebetween perforations in the transverse rows of perforations in the stamproll.

The top plate 72, mounted for cooperation with the base plate 64 toproperly support a row of stamps for the severing action of the plungerand plun-ger head or stamping block 42, constitutes the other mainelement of the supportmechanism. As best seen in FIG. 6, the top plate72 is provided with a vertical stud 73 threadably engaged with lateraladjusting screw 74 mounted on back plate i1:2 and provided with setscrew 75. Top plate 72 may thus be laterally adjusted by turning ofknurled head 76. As shown in lFIG. 8, a bottom view of the top plate 72,this plate is provided with guide pins 77 which cooperate with the`sl-ots 68 in the base plate 64 to provide .for lateral adjustment ofthe top plate 72 with respect to the ibase plate. As seen in FIGS. 5 and8, the top plate 72 is provided with opposed vertical adjustment slots78. When the top plate 72 is in position, Ithe slots 78 are directlyover threaded holes, not shown, extending through base plate `64. Inorder to provide for vertical adjustment or" the distance between thetop plate and base plate, and thereby provide yfor adjustment of thepressure on the stamp roll between the plates, spring loaded verticaladjustment screws 79 are threadably engaged at their ends with thethreaded holes in base plate 64 and are spring loaded by means olf screwsprings 80 which are Ibiased between tihe heads of screws 79 and guideplate 82. It is readily seen that by vertical adjustment of the screws79 the pressure between the top plate and base plate can be adjusted. Asseen in FIG. 8, the top plate 72 is provided with a peep slot 84 throughwhich the row of dots 70 can be observed tor ali-gnment of theperforations laterally to conform with the dots. As seen in tFlG. 6, thetop plate 72 is provided with internal slots 86 which extendhorizontally in the direction of travel of the stamp roll. The purposeof these slots is to provide space when needed for excess area of stampswhich happen -to be larger than stamps used in conventional stamp rolls.

A guide plate 82 provided with a downwardly extending ange overlappingthe ends of plates 64 and 72 is mounted on the top of plate 72 by meansof screws 79 and springs 80 as previously described. The purpose o-f theguide plate is to guide the stamp downwardly and to cooperate with lever88 to take the reverse crimp out of the stamp to insure that it ismaintained in a iiat orientation for pressing on the envelope. The endof the guide plate also serves to prevent reverse travel of thesucceeding stamp due to the motion of guard 46 as the plunger is raisedafter the stamping action. The device will operate satisfactorilywithout the guide plate but this element improves its operation.

For properly aligning a stamp as it is fed beneath the pressure pad 50so that the upper tooth 48 engagesthe row of perforations, a positioninglever 88 is supported by screw 90 (FIG. 6) on peg 92 which is attachedto back plate 12 -by a screw 93 or other convenient means. Thepositioning lever 88 is spring biased into upward position so that itsend contacts the bottom of the rst stamp, by means of biasing spring 94Amounted over peg 92 and having one end attached to or supported againstmovement by base plate 64 and the other end attached to the lever arm88. In this position the lever prevents curling of the stamp andcooperates with guide plate 82 to hold the stamp in a llat position. Itwill be seen from FIG. 2 that the lever arm 88 is positioned so that itstop edge will be contacted *by the top `row of teeth 48 as the plunger32 is moved to the closed position to move t-he lever to its dotted lineposition as shown in FIG. 2, with its end nesting in slot 611.. Thelever can be constructed and arranged to seat against the teeththemselves and the slot 61 dispensed with.

The entire assembly of the sta-mp applying mechanism may be providedwith a suitable removable cover it `desired. A container 96 'formoistening Huid and an envelope guide 98 and wetting pad may be providedin the base for moistening the envelope ap for sealing.

The operation of the stamp applying apparatus of the invention isdescribed as follows. The stamp roll referred to herein, and which isused in the stamp vapplying apparatus of the invention, is theIconventional roll of postage stamps sold by U.S. Post Oiices andcomprises a -roll of some 100 or more stamps joined together by paperlinkages which are provided with transverse lrows of perforationsproviding for separation of the stamps by tearing along theperiforations.

A roll of stamps is loaded in the machine tby placing it over `spindle18 and threading the end of the roll between base plate 6'4 and topplate 72 until the rst stamp extends beneath pressure pad 50 and the rstrow of perf-orations is lined up with the upper row of teeth 48. Thepressure on the stamp roll between top plate and base plate isadjustedby means of vertical pressure adjustment screws 79 =until therequired pressure ifor proper feeding of the stamp roll is reached. Itisimportant that the sta-mp roll be properly aligned :laterally and thisis achieved by laterally adjusting top plate 72 by means of lateraladjustment :screw 74 until the dots 70 can be observed through theperforations in the stamp roll and peep slot 84. Tl apparatus is nowready forA applying a .stamp to an envelope.

An envelope 28 is moved into position as shown in FIG. 2, and as itmoves into position contacts pad 30 to moisten the varea to which thestamp is to be applied. With the envelope and the lirst stamp inposition, the plunger 32 is pressed downward to the closed position. Asthe plunger is moved downward, the upper row of teeth 48 will beinserted in the transverse perforations succeeding the first stamp tomove the roll down to the severing position where the first stampissevered from the roll by means of the meshing teeth. It is thus seenthat the feeding movement of the stamp roll is accomplished by theplunger action. As the plunger with the stamping block 42 movesdownward, the lever arm 88 will be pressed downward to the retractedposition as shown in FIG. 2, meanwhile being in contact at all timeswith the second stamp in the roll after it has guided the irst stampinto position under the pad 50. At the closed position of the plungerthe lever arm 88 will be pressing the second st-amp against the guardplate 46 to hold it there for the next action of the plunger.

As the stamping block 42 moves down with the plunger, the pressure pad50 is maintained in its angled position by the manner in which it ismounted on the bottom of stamping block 42 so that its forward endcontacts the stamp first, smooths it out, clears it from the teeth 60and further extends it to the proper position before it presses it intosealed position. It is thus seen that the lever 88 and the pressure pad58 cooperate to properly align the stamp as it is moved to its requiredposition on the envelope and that the lever 8S also functions to holdthe next stamp in the roll in proper position to prevent it from curlingwhile the rst stamp is being sealed on the envelope. As the plunger isretracted the lever arm 88 retracts to position the second stamp in theproper position under the stamp pad and prevent it from curling. It isimportant that thepressure pad be main' tained at an angle so that itsfront edge strikes the stamp I rst, and that the positioning lever 88 beproperly positioned with respect to the upper row of teeth and the guardplate 46 to properly perform its function. Also of importance is theamount of vertical pressure exerted on the stamp roll between the baseplate 64 and top plate 72, and the proper lateral alignment of the stamproll. All of these factors, coupled with the three-dimensional meshing-teeth contribute to the reliability of the apparatus in insuring theproper positioning of each stamp and severance thereof as it is appliedto the envelope or other article.

It will be seen from the above description of the construction andoperation of the stamp applying apparatus of the invention, that theinvention provides an extremely simplified device which is readilyadaptable to simple manufacturing techniques. The device is highlydependable in providing for accurate positioning of a stamp on anarticle and in providing for severance of each stamp at the proper time.It provides simplified mechanism for adjusting vertical pressure on thestamp roll in the feed mechanism and in providing for lateral adjustmentof the stamp roll therein. It `further provides a dependable andsimplified arrangement of elements for properly positioning a stamp onan article and for insuring that the succeeding stamp is in position forproper alignment and sealing on an envelope. vantage of the invention isthe fact that an automatically operating device is provided through ahighly simplified construction.

It lis therefore to be understood that various modifications and changesmay be made in the construction and arrangement of parts of the presentinvention without departing from the spirit and scope thereof as definedby the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. Apparatus for removing a stamp from a stamp roll and sealing it to anarticle comprising: means for supporting a roll of said stamps; feedsupport means for supporting in feeding relationship a stamp at the endof said roll, said feed support means comprising a base plate and a topplate laterally and vertically adjustable with respect to each other,said base plate being provided with reference means serving as a guidefor lateral adjustment of said roll in said feed support means and saidtop plate being provided with an opening through which said roll can beviewed for aid in lateral adjustment thereof; a stationary jaw having atleast one :row of three dimensional teeth thereon; a movable jaw havinga row of three dimensional teeth thereon which coact with the teeth ofthe stationary jaw to sever completely said stamp from said roll; andplunger means to which said movable jaw is attached, for atfixing theteeth thereof in the area between said stamp and the succeeding stamp tofeed the stamp to the proper position, for meshing said teeth togetherto sever completely said stamp from the roll and for pressing said stampon said article.

2. Apparatus for sealing a stamp from a stamp roll having a rowofperforations between stamps to an envelope comprising: a base; anupright back plate sup- A signicant adported on said base; a reservoirfor holding moistening fluid supported near one end of said back platewith means in its bottom for application of -moisture to said envelopein the area to receive a stamp; a spindle member supported near theother end of said back plate for supporting a roll of stamps with theroll surrounding the spindle; a feed support mechanism between saidreservoir and spindle comprising a base plate supported at a slightangle to the horizontal and a top plate cooperating with the base plateto support said stamp roll between them; means for vertically adjustingthe distance between said top and base plates; means for lateraladjustment of the plates with respect to each other; a lever armsupported on said back plate below said feed mechanism and spring biasedinto the upward position to contact the bottom of said stamp to positionit; a stationary jaw on the top of said base lbeneath said lever andhaving a rst row of three dimensional teeth thereon; a plunger housingsupported on said back plate between said reservoir and said feedmechanism having a wall adjacent said reservoir extending near said basewith its lower end serving as a guide for an envelope being stamped; aplunger mounted in said housing and spring biased into the upwardposition; a stamping block on the bottom of said plunger for pressing astamp on said envelope; a pivotal pad on the bottom of said stampingblock for contacting said stamp; a second row of three dimensional teethadapted to coact with said iirst row of teeth located on the side ofsaid stamping block adjacent said feed support mechanism and positionedto contact said lever on downward movement of the block and to entersaid row of perforations to sever said stamp from said roll as one ofsaid rows of teeth move past the other said row upon downward movementof said plunger.

3. The apparatus of claim 2 in which a guide plate is mounted on the topof said top plate and a slot is provided in said stationary jaw forreceiving the end of said vvlever arm in its downward position.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,012,021 12/1911 Schweiger 156-529 1,211,499 9/1917 Storck 156-531 1,716,991 6/ 1929Turner 83-694 2,864,446 12/ 1958 Olson 83-694 EARL M. BERGERT, PrimaryExaminer. DOUGLASS DRUMMOND, Assistant Examiner.

1. APPARATUS FOR REMOVING A STAMP FROM A STAMP ROLL AND SEALING IT TO ANARTICLE COMPRISING: MEANS FOR SUPPORTING A ROLL OF SAID STAMPS; FEEDSUPPORT MEANS FOR SUPPORTING IN FEEDING RELATIONSHIP A STAMP AT THE ENDOF SAID ROLL, SAID FEED SUPPORT MEANS COMPRISING A BASE PLATE AND A TOPPLATE LATERALLY AND VERTICALLY ADJUSTABLE WITH RESPECT TO EACH OTHER,SAID BASE PLATE BEING PROVIDED WITH REFERENCE MENAS SERVING AS A GUIDEFOR LATERAL ADJUSTMENT OF SAID ROLL IN SAID FEED SUPPORT MEANS AND SAIDTOP PLATE BEING PROVIDED WITH AN OPENING THROUGH WHICH SAID ROLL CAN BEVIEWED FOR AID IN LATERAL ADJUSTMENT THEREOF; A STATIONARY JAW HAVING ATLEAST ONE ROW OF THREE DIMEN-